LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) - E. Laurence Chalmers, who led the University of Kansas during a turbulent period from 1969 to 1972, died Tuesday. He was 81.

The death in Durango, Colo., was announced by the school. A cause of death was not immediately known.

Chalmers, a psychologist, became chancellor during a period of student protests nationwide. At Kansas, he was credited with keeping the peace after an arsonist struck the student union in 1970.

Chalmers also averted a student strike by agreeing to let students leave for the semester with the grades they had already earned - a move that angered some faculty members.

Chalmers eventually resigned as chancellor under pressure from the Kansas Board of Regents. He later went on to serve as director of the Chicago Art Institute.